Finance minister says STEP not at risk, other programs may not be so lucky
Posted Dec 22, 2015 9:51 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
As Finance Minister Joe Ceci warns low oil prices may force him to pull back on millions of dollars of commitments made by Alberta’s new NDP government, he says campaign promises will be followed through on.
That includes bringing back STEP, the Summer Temporary Employment Program, which supports students by helping them gain work experience, build transferable skills and ultimately, find employment.
“Other things that we haven’t announced that were in our platform potentially could get pushed off or lowered but that will be a discussion cabinet has first,” he said.
He says the goal is still to stay at the forecast $6.1-billion deficit, but couldn’t provide any assurances.
Ceci made the comments during a conference call after a meeting of the Federal, Provincial and Territorial finance ministers in Ottawa.
